RELIGION AND POLISH FOREING POLICY IN THE XXI CENTURY

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to draw a map of the essential points of contact between religion and foreign policy in Poland during 2001-2020. The analytic studies have shown that the relationships between religion and Polish foreign policy could be observed in all the dimensions mentioned by the theoretical approaches, i.e. in the dimension of influence of religious ideas, religious entities and institutions, in the field of presence of religious elements on the agenda of foreign policy, and with reference to religious diplomacy. The impact of religious ideas was limited to the generally interpreted Christianity. Religious entities would strongly prefer to exert their influence from the level of meta-politics than to do this by direct means. Among all the institutions, only the electoral system played a relatively significant role in the introduction of religious components to foreign policy, yet only in the initial period. The presence of religious elements on the agenda of the foreign policy was not permanent and was actually limited to a few initiatives. Similarly, religious diplomacy does not seem to be a methodology that is deeply rooted in Poland’s political culture, and it is not really accepted by the religious entities.